Cytoarchitectonic distribution of zinc in the hippocampus of man and the rat

Abstract

Zinc was measured in whole hippocampus and in hippocampal sub-regions by stable-isotope dilution mass spectrometry. In both man and the rat, the most zinc (102-145 ppm, dry weight) was found in the hilar region, the least (27-35) in the fimbria. The amount of zinc directly associated with mossy-fiber axons was estimated to be approximately 8% of the total zinc in the hippocampus, and the concentration of mossy-fiber zinc was estimated at 220-300 microM. Methodological and theoretical implications of the quantitative findings were discussed.